


The Joker's Son, Forever

by eyeless_soul



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-24
Updated: 2013-05-24
Packaged: 2017-12-12 20:46:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 5,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/815882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eyeless_soul/pseuds/eyeless_soul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is just my take on Batman Beyonds 'Return of the Joker."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Tim had barely recovered from being kidnapped by Slade. The fact that he had been Slade’s prisoner for over a month and he had been willing to sell him to the highest bidder had shaken the teen up pretty bad.

Dick had assured Bruce that given time the teen would come around and be the way that he had always been. He just needed time to get his bearings. He was glad that the kid didn’t bring croc up or Bruce had been smart enough to leave it alone.

It had been a month after his rescue before he went out as Robin again. One of the first nights that he’d been out, he was aware that he was being watched. At first he thought that perhaps it was Nightwing, Batman or any other member of the Justice League but something in his gut told him otherwise. 

He had been caught of guard and kidnapped once; he was determined not to have that happen again. He was on high alert. He was determined to prove to Batman that he could handle himself and Robin.  
®  
Joker sat on the roof. This was not his normal habit; then again this was no normal night. He had been furious to find that the deal he had laboured over had gone bad. 

He had originally sat there to clear his mind. He usually likes to clear his head in Arkham but he had already decided that if the opportunity presented itself he would capture Robin. A noise behind him disrupted his thoughts. He hates when some nut job in a mask gets the better of him. As he turns, he sighs in relief that it’s only one of his thugs.

“What?!” The Joker stares at him, smile letting him know that he is severely irritated with the interruption. The cold stare lets him know that if it isn’t good news that he’s reporting he might as well jump off the roof.

“Word on the street is that the Bat is leaving town tomorrow night.”

The Joker stood up suddenly, causing the other man to take a step back. The Joker grabbed him by his shoulders. “This is great news. Then since Nightwing has moved to Blüdhaven that means Robin will be unsupervised.” As he peered over the ledge he saw the costumed kid he was after swing onto another roof. He smiled, slightly rubbing his hands together. “We make our move tomorrow at midnight.”


	2. Chapter 2

Bruce sat in his private jet dialing his home number on his cell phone. He knew that everything was probably all right but he had to check. The phone rang three times, he was just about to contact the pilot and tell him to head back for Gotham when the phone was answered.

“Wayne Manor.”

He smiled as he immediately recognized the teen’s voice. He was pleased to see that Tim remembered their chat about how properly answer the phone. “Hey Tim. It’s Bruce.”

Tim twirled the cord between his fingers and waited. “Checking up on me?”

Bruce smiled as he noted the impatient and annoyed tone in Tim’s voice. Despite everything that had happened, Tim was still in a hurry to prove that he could handle himself. What Tim didn’t know was that Bruce already trusted him. He had complete faith in his ability to handle Gotham City; he would never had left him alone if he didn’t. Tim had been trained by both himself and Dick and he had the street kid smarts that Dick didn’t. The kid was ready. 

“I’m not checking up on you. I just wanted to know if Dick called.” Bruce thought that this was a very clever excuse. However, Tim wasn’t falling for it.

“Uh-huh. Let me check.” Tim began flipping through the book that they kept all the messages in. “Nope. No one’s called for you.” Tim used the tone that he reserved for adults bothering the hell out of him. “Anything else?”

Bruce smiled. He was glad that Tim was resilient; he had bounced back from his ordeal quite quickly. “If you go anywhere, be careful.”

Tim rolled his eyes back. Whether adopted or biological all parents were a pain in the ass.

It was Bruce’s attitude that made Tim’s stubborn streak shine through. Bruce had been over-protective from the minute Dick had brought him home. It was driving him crazy. He saw this as his one way to get Bruce to relax if he could prove that he could handle the city in his absence then he’d realize that he was capable of caring for himself and didn’t need a babysitter.


	3. Chapter 3

The Joker sat in what used to be Arkham; in his old cell and waited. He stared at the crude drawings and words that decorated the walls. It was different now. There was no door on the cell, no prisoner across the hall and no guards to antagonize. 

He smiled into the dark when he looked at the clock and realized it as 11:53. His plan could be put into action soon. This time he wouldn’t screw it up. He’d make Batman suffer like he never had before. He wouldn’t leave him to bury his sidekick. No. Even if he died in the end, he would leave Batman with a constant reminder that he had existed and after years of fighting he had the last laugh after all. 

He got up and left the old asylum. He started walking towards the spot where Harley and Arnold would be waiting. The Joker smiled as he walked through the alley and onto a fire escape. Just as he got there he saw Harley hit the boy with a mallet. He smiled as Arnold picked the boy up. “Now for the fun.


	4. Chapter 4

Bruce was on his way back to Gotham City. Alfred had called him to say that Robin never returned home the night before and that his tracking device wasn’t working. Then the school had called that morning to say the boy hadn’t shown up for class. Both Robin and Tim were officially missing.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do apologise for any and all typos. For one reason or another when I fixed then it didn't show up here.

Robin muttered a curse under his breath. This was supposed to be a way to show Batman that he was able to care for himself—not get re kidnapped. He listened to the sounds around him; once it had become apparent that he was alone he opened his eyes. The room was dark. He was strapped to a table. His utility belt was gone and he was pretty sure that the low humming noise that seemed to come from everywhere wasn’t good either.

The room was suddenly filled with a bright light. The light was so bright (after being in the dark for so long) that Robin was forced to shut his eyes.

The Joker had a purpose for doing that. While Robin had his eyes closed The Joker slipped a pair of headphones on him. Now the only thing that Robin could hear was static. Like he had when he was kidnapped by Slade he hoped that he would be found before anything really bad happened. 

Suddenly electricity shot through his body. He screamed as loud as he could. It seemed to go on forever. Then there was nothing but the static. He was on edge, somebody had to have been in the room to turn the lights and place the earphones on his head. Now the electricity that could be on a timer. For hours he readied his mind and body for another shock. After three shocks he felt tears gather under his mask. The super-absorbent material sucked it up. The static was gone.

Robin jerked his head as he felt a hand ruffle through his hair. “Ya know; it’ll be easier if you just co-operate with him. He can be a really great guy if you give him the chance, sweetie.” Then the comfort and warmth from the hand was gone.

The lights were turned back on but they were dim enough that they didn’t hurt his eyes. The table moved. It went from lying flat to being vertical. He wasn’t all that surprised to find himself staring at The Joker.

“Look at me with all the contempt you want. By the time it’s over you will have told me everything I need to know.”

Robin did the worst thing that one can do when held in a helpless position with The Joker—he laughed. It was 3 days before he saw anyone. When The Joker came in, the first thing he did was send the boy through a two and a half minute electrical shock cycle. Robin was embarrassed and angered to know that his bladder had let go.

After 4 more days of shock treatments and needles full of god knew what being pumped into him, The Joker was relieved to find the boy mumbling to himself. He had been let off the table once he had become too weak and frightened to fight The Joker. Robin’s world had been reduced to static, lights that were too bright and beatings. Sometimes so severe that they left him unconscious. Now The Joker was elated to find his prisoner rocking back and forth, scratching things into the floor and mumbling.

“J.J.” The Joker was even further delighted when the boy acknowledged his name, the name that had been whispered in his ears all day and all night on a continual loop. He knew, that it would only be a matter of time before the boy would begin to forget.

Next The Joker would manipulate the boy, tear down his self-esteem and make him believe that the only one who loved him was The Joker. He had to make him believe that he was owned by The Joker and that he alone had ever cared for him.

He knelt beside the boy and smoothed back his clack hair. This boy was going to be his greatest creation, his prodigy. Once the transformation was complete the child would be just like him. 

The first thing that he needed to do was to get Robin to reject his mask. Once that was done, the rest would be unbearably easy. But just incase things didn’t go according to plan he had his portable shocker. It was very similar to a prod. If the end of the staff made contact with anything it gave off a steady bolt of electricity until the contact was broken. 

As soon as Tim saw the staff he began to whimper and he backed up. He was up against the wall, shivering and shaking his head. He knew that staff. He couldn’t remember what it was called but he knew that when it touched him it shocked him.

He took the boy by the shoulders and led him to the mirror on the wall. The boy was facing the floor as they approached the wall. Tim hated mirrors and he hated his reflection. He hated…everything. 

The Joker grabbed the boy from under his chin. “Look at me, J.J.” The boy shifted his gaze. “Good. Now look at you.” The boy dropped his gaze and shook his head.

The Joker raised his staff. “Do I have to use this?” The boy was shaking and there were tears leaking out from under the mask. “Why do you wear this? Do you still think that Bruce is coming for you?”

For a minute Tim panics. He knows who Batman is. Then he calms down; he remembers that he had told him. The Joker had been sending currents electricity through his body in 15-minute intervals for almost 2 hours; he thought for sure that he was going to die. His bladder had let go and his muscles wouldn’t stop trembling.

That’s when The Joker, along with Harley had popped into view. He wished that he could wipe the tears away but he couldn’t. With horror, he realized that Joker had a pitcher of water. “If I poured this over you,” he tapped the pitcher with his index finger “and turned on the power, what would happen?”

Robin shook his head. “I’ll get electrocuted.”

“Who is Batman?”

When he was bet by silence he gave the stubborn sidekick another minute of electricity. Robin couldn’t help it, he screamed. As soon as the buzzing and humming stopped, he forced himself to take a deep breath. “B-B-Bruce Wayne.” The rest is a haze. With each shock treatment, punch, syringe filled with shit that made his pain seem all the more vivid he told The Joker whatever he wanted.

Tim is snapped back to reality by a light tapping on his shoulder, far gentler then he had expected.

“Do you still think Bruce is coming for you?” He repeats the question.

Robin shakes his head. It has been far too long. If Batman was going to rescue him, if anyone was going to rescue him they’d have done it by now. That’s exactly when he realizes that there isn’t going to be a swift rescue by Nightwing, Batman or anyone. The Joker is probably going to kill him and no one is going to care.

The Joker smiles. He can practically feel the kid breaking. He smiles his biggest smile; the satisfaction in knowing that he is responsible for the cracking of Robin’s spirit is the best feeling in the world.

The Joker tightened his hold on the boy’s shoulders. “If he isn’t coming for you, why the mask?” He watched as Robin fingered the edges of his mask. He sighed and peeled the mask off his face. He looked at the floor again, not wanting to face the boy in the mirror.

The Joker laughed at the boy, crying with his hair in his face. He grabbed the boy by his chin and forced him to look in the mirror. “Who are you? Who is the boy holding a play-time mask? Is it Robin?”

Robin straightened his shoulders and looked at his reflection. “Yes. It’s Robin.”

The Joker took his prod and connected it with Robin’s back. At first the boy tried to hold back his scream but as the electricity coursed through his body and he could smell burning hair he screamed. Then the electricity stopped. Robin had fallen to his knees during the assault. He was breathing hard but that soon slowed. The Joker grabbed him by the shoulders, once again and pulled him to his feet. “Who are you, little boy?”

“I don’t know what answer you want.”

The Joker backhanded the boy hard enough that he hit his head off the cement floor and blacked out. The Joker waited. He knew that the child wouldn’t be out long. The Bat had trained him, and Bat Brats were never unconscious long, not even when medicated. This boy was no exception. 

In the few minutes that Robin had been unconscious, the Joker restarted the tape. He shut the door and turned off the lights. In the dark the only thing Robin could hear was “Your name is J.J. Joker Jr. and your Daddy loves you.”

He was left in the dark for three days. When The Joker returned he wasn’t surprised that the room stank. With no bathroom the boy had soiled himself. The Joker pulled the boy by his arm and dragged him over to a corner of the room. He carefully cut the boy out of his clothes. Knowing what The Joker was capable of doing he stayed as still as possible.

Harley came into the room with a hose. She shrugged as Robin covered his eyes. He knew that this was going to hurt. He bit into his bottom lip as highly pressurized water assaulted every inch of his body, washing the filth and grime down the drain. He was suddenly cold when the water stopped.

The Joker was holding up an outfit. Harley smiled when she realized what the Joker was holding up and what the boy was mumbling. The Joker had a child’s outfit that looked almost exactly like his own. “But first, let’s dye that hair. What do ya say?”

Tim stood up. “Daddy loves J.J.”

The Joker smiled. Tim smiled back. At first he had had his doubts that it would work. There were even times when he thought that maybe his plan wasn’t the best idea that he ever had. Then this turn of events made him very happy. Unless the child was faking it; although he doubted that insanity like this could be faked.


	6. Chapter 6

Batman was furious. Robin was still missing. None of the criminal underground had seen him. He trusted that they were telling him the truth. Most criminals didn’t lie to him when he was having a good day, he didn’t think that they were suicidal enough to lie to him when he was pissed. He had rejected Batgirl’s idea of calling in reinforcements; he knew what she meant. She thought that he should tell Nightwing. No way. After everything that had happened between them he was certain that he didn’t need to involve his former partner.

He and Batgirl had received an invitation. They had gone to the rooftop specified and she had never seen him so angry as the moment when he figured out that Robin was being kept in Arkham. Batgirl went with him. She had already decided that if things got ugly or out of hand she would be there to protect whoever kidnapped Robin from Batman.

The old Arkham asylum looked empty. They searched the entire building and they found Harley stabbed to death on the floor. At first Batgirl thought that The Joker had finally snapped but she found him in a puddle of water with live wires still dancing around his lifeless body.

Batman exited the old Operating Theatre. There had been a video playing on a continuous loop. It was The Joker torturing Robin over and over; Robin in the corner unmasked, shaking from all the ‘shock treatments’ and babbling everything that he could figure that the man would want to know. Batman just shook his head; he couldn’t imagine everything Tim had gone through. He was sure that the boy was still alive. He saw Batgirl in the hall. “Did you find them?”

“Them? The Joker and Harley are dead. I haven’t found Robin.”

Batman scanned the small hallway. Robin was trained very well; it would’ve taken a long time before his mind cracked. If he did lose hope and just give in to whatever The Joker had planned for him, he was sure that Robin would have left him some sort of clue. He started walking down the long hallway. Batgirl knew that he’d handle this badly but she never imagined that he’d be this silent, brooding and probably looking for a body. He turned the corner that lead into a different room. She followed carefully and tried not to gasp at what she saw.

The room was no bigger than a prison cell. There was a mattress on the floor and in the corner there was a hole cut into the floor. The walls were covered in scratches. Some were written pleas for help. Then the writing would get shaky and some would just be HAHAHAHA. Then all over the floor was the same thing over and over.

DADDY LOVES ME  
J.J.  
HAHAHAHA

Batman had moved to where the mattress was. It took her a minute, but then she realized what he was looking at, bunched in-between the edge of the mattress and the wall was Robin’s mask, utility belt and his “R” shaped throwing disks. Batman picked these things up and walked away. As they left the building Batman was more resolved then ever to find Robin. He was convinced that his partner was still alive. He just didn’t know where to look.


	7. Chapter 7

Nightwing watched over the streets of Blüdhaven. Things had gotten better since he had moved there a couple of years ago. Much like Gotham, Blüdhaven had her problems but Nightwing was doing a fairly decent job of cleaning up the streets as well as cleaning up her crooked police department. 

And although the criminals were running scared and the Police Department was full of honest, hard working cops who had been ordered by the Commissioner to arrest Nightwing on sight. Officer Dick Grayson, who was in charge of the Major Crimes Unit, swore that he was close to tracking the vigilante down. That was done on purpose. The Commissioner knew who Nightwing was, that’s why Grayson was in charge. He thought it was funny. They seemed more than happy to let Nightwing clean up their streets but as soon as the real danger was over, Blüdhaven’s finest wanted him out of the way.

Now he stood on a roof, watching a group of men walk around the corner that The First National Bank was on. He had seen this scenario at least twice that week. Just as he was about to swing down and put an end to the casing, out of nowhere there was a flash of black, some moves that only he himself had used and then the bad guys were dead.

When he got down to the ground he realized, disturbed that each one had been stabbed several times and yet the boy (he was sure it wasn’t a man, it was too small) hadn’t been down there very long. He knew that he had a problem but without a clear direction of where the kid went he decided to call it a night.

By the time he got home it was either late or early depending on what side of things a person tended to look at. Nightwing’s hideout was in an unblueprinted basement of an ‘abandoned’ warehouse. There was an underground tunnel big enough for a car to drive through if followed all the way (knowing which walls were false made sure you didn’t get stuck) would lead to the basement of his condo. It was just one of the perks when it came to having Bruce Wayne as your parental figure. Bruce owned both places so there was no rent and if anything ever needed repairing Dick would just call him.

Either way, he was not in the mood to deal with a break in at his house. Unfortunately, most burglars don’t care that some people work both night and day. He walked in quietly, without making a sound. As he entered the living room he was surprised by what he saw. Sitting in the corner was a boy with green hair, white skin and a blood red smile on his face. He was rocking back and forth and mumbling to himself. When he looked up with his piercing blue eyes Dick suddenly knew who he was.

He cautiously walked over to the boy. He had to be sure. “Tim?” 

The boy looked up, his grin widening as he started to laugh. It wasn’t a good laugh. It was the sort of nerve grating laugh that made Dick want to pulverize that person anything to get it to stop. It was The Joker’s laugh.

He managed to pick the youth up. He knew that he was taking a huge risk in doing that. If Tim got startled it could mean big trouble for him but he had to get the kid calmed down. He was both relieved and saddened when Tim grabbed onto his shirt, burying his face in the soft, warm material and cried.


	8. Chapter 8

Bruce had regretfully called it a night. After searching into the early hours of the morning and finding nothing he was exhausted. He knew that Barbara was too so they made an agreement to resume the search the next night. Once he had showered and changed into pajamas, he was just about to crawl into bed when his phone rang. He was half-tempted to let Alfred get it but he thought (hoped) that it was the commissioner saying that they had found Tim and that he was all right. The paternal part of Bruce’s brain wanted to insist that this was completely plausible. But the more rational part of his brain realized that if anything, it was the commissioner telling him that they found the body. His hand was shaky as he picked up the phone. 

“Hello?” He tried to control the quiver in his voice.

“Bruce, it’s Dick. I have a question for you. Where’s Tim?”

Bruce put a hand over his head and ran it through his hair. It figured that the one that he had been trying to hide this from, was the one that found something. He took a deep breath. “I don’t know.”

Dick nodded even though he knew that Bruce couldn’t see it. “I only asked because I have a kid in my apartment that looks a lot like Tim.”

Bruce was worried. There was something in Dick’s voice that told him that something was terribly wrong. “What do you mean?”

Dick hesitated and looked at the boy sleeping on his couch. He watched as the boys features tightened and he curled into a ball, whimpering. He couldn’t fathom what the child had been through. He didn’t want to torture Bruce. Yes, he was angry about not being told that Robin was missing but he knew that Bruce would already blame himself for what happened. No need to mock his pain. “I think that it would be best if you just came over.”

Bruce bit his lip in worry. “Okay, I’ll be right there.” Bruce hung up the phone and sliding his body out of the security of the covers. He quickly dressed in a black button down shirt and a pair of jeans. All he could think of was the mutilated condition that Robin’s body was probably in. By the time he reached Dick’s he was shaky and he was sure that he was going to vomit. But on the outside he appeared eerily calm. He had to be. Tim deserved that much.

Dick led him inside the house. “He’s in the living room. He’s alive but he hasn’t said anything. He’s not responding to his name.”

Bruce walked into the living room. He gasped at what he saw. He guessed that The Joker had had the last laugh. He had killed Robin but he also destroyed Tim in the process. “Tim?” There was no response. “On the floor of his ‘room’ he had scribbled the initials J.J.”

Tim looked up. He gathered his knees to his chest and started to rock back and forth. Despite that his eyes were side he was laughing. The laugh sounded a lot like The Joker’s. It took every ounce of self-control that Dick had not to cover his ears with his hands.

“J.J.?” Bruce didn’t like the way it sounded. To his disappointment Tim looked up. As Bruce looked at Tim he realized that everything he had stood for was gone. He doubted that Tim would ever be able to function as a normal human being. 

Dick looked at his guardian. He knew Bruce well enough and long enough to know when he was beating himself up. This was definitely one of those times. Dick grabbed Bruce by the arm and pulled him into the kitchen. “You can’t do this. He needs you.”

Bruce looked into the concerned eyes of his ex-ward. “I know but it’s over. He’s won. I thought that I had trained him to be invincible; or at the very least to take care of himself. And looked what happened. I’m done with partners.”

Dick shook his head. “He knew the risks the moment he put on the mask. We all did. And if you remember, after I quit he sought Batman out! I think that he was more aware of the risks then you think.”

Bruce seemed to consider that before going back into the living room. He watched as Tim (ever mindful of his surroundings) carefully got out of his sitting position and cautiously checked out the room. He noted that he stayed away from the walls, windows and doors. “J.J.”

The boy looked at him, his head cocked to one side, eyes wide and for a split second panic overtook his features before the grin returns and he giggles. 

Bruce took a deep breath. The fact that he had been panicked, was able to panic, showed that he was semi-aware of his surroundings. Tim Drake was in there; he just needed to find a way to reach him. He held out his hand. “Come on J.J. Let’s go home.”


	9. Chapter 9

The ride back to Wayne Manor was silent. Bruce was hoping that if he surrounded Tim with his things and good memories that maybe he’d come around. He knew that it was a long stretch but he also knew that every little thing helped. 

Dick, on the other hand was skeptical. It was obvious that The Joker had messed with his head among other things. He thought that Bruce was putting too much faith in the boy that he believed was buried deep in J.J.’s mind. Dick wasn’t sure. His mind kept going back to when Tim broke into his house. If he retained enough of Batman’s teachings, he very well could be the deadliest foe that Batman has.

But he also trusted Batman and his judgment. If The Bat didn’t think that it was safe to bring Tim home, then he would’ve had him locked away. He shook his head. Tim had been such a smart boy. Batman had insisted that he be well trained—and he was. Despite his shady past he had a good head on his shoulders or at least he had. The Psycho-clown was dead but had he been successful in tearing down the hero and making an heir?  
_________________________________________________________________ 

THREE MONTHS LATER

Tim sat in his room (what Bruce had assured him was his room) humming a tune he had in his head. The door to his room was open. Bruce tried to convince him that nothing would happen if he walked through it. Despite his open manner and tone Tim always waited for him. He had a theory; if he tried to walk through without Bruce he was sure that he’d be electrocuted.

He had been good so far. He hadn’t been beaten, locked in the dark or shocked into submission since his arrival. He was unsure as to how long he had been there but seeing that nothing negative had happened; he had to have been doing as he was told. In Tim’s/J.J.’s eyes everything was going to peachy.

Bruce could disagree. It had been three months and there had been very little to no change in Tim. On any given day his fragile mind will decide that he’s Joker Jr. When he’s J.J. all he wants to do is destroy things. He stabbed Dick in the hand earlier that week, for no apparent reason at all.

Whether he is Tim or J.J. he doesn’t speak. J.J. laughs and Tim cries. This is particularly heartbreaking for Bruce. Bruce has had Tim evaluated over and over. All of the diagnoses are the same. He had suffered severe trauma and as a result his mind created another personality. From what Bruce understood the other personality, J.J. was everything that was destructive, he dealt with all the things that Tim couldn’t or didn’t want to deal with. J.J. was the one that did everything that The Joker had wanted Tim to do. 

Tim knew what J.J. was doing. Tim was perfectly aware that there was something not completely right with himself. It was in their expert opinion that Tim would probably never talk again. Dick didn’t agree with that, He thought that if the child was put in the right circumstances he might talk again but he knew that even that was just grasping at straws, deep down he knew that the doctors were right. Tim would never be the same.

And so time went on. Tim, on several occasions tried to talk but most of the time the only thing that came out was giggles or sobs. He soon became frustrated but he realized that that was pointless. For one reason or another he couldn’t talk. At night while he lay awake, the soft glow from his nightlight (for he couldn’t stand being in total darkness) his only company he realized that perhaps not talking was the best way to go. J.J. often told him that these people were his enemy and therefore one day they would need to be taken out. He disagreed with that. These people were his family, they loved him and they were trying to understand exactly what was happening to him. And for that he loved them back.

_________________________________________________________________

Bruce sat reading his paper in the quietness of the morning. Tim was away at one of his many appointments and Dick was at work. In light of everything that happened Dick had decided to move back in with Bruce. After all, Bruce would need help with Tim, at least he was responding to that name more often than not.

It had been almost a year since Tim was kidnapped and traumatized by The Joker. He still didn’t speak. Bruce had made peace with the fact that he never would again. Despite that he is more like Tim than J.J. He isn’t even half as destructive as he was even six months ago. Bruce tries to look at the positive side of things, at least for Tim’s sake. At least he would walk in and out of a room by himself; his hair and skin had gone back to its normal colour. He still had the smile. The doctors said that that would never go away. From what they could tell, he had used some sort of acid to burn the smile into the boy’s face; it was unlike anything that they had ever seen. They said that it was probably something unique that The Joker had been working on for a long time. 

Bruce sighed mentally when Tim walked into the room. There may still be a lot wrong with him but at least he seemed happy. Most of the time he would cuddle in-between Dick and him and watch TV. There some days when he would cry non-stop but his anxiety medication took care of that. The only thing that Bruce couldn’t figure out and Dick was no less clueless was that he seemed to have a major thing against mirrors. It didn’t matter why you would want him to look in the mirror. He would shake violently and cry. Sometimes he’d curl into a ball or look fleetingly around the room as if looking for a way out. He hated shocks of any kind.

Tim sat on the couch across from Bruce. After a few minutes the boy was asleep. When he was asleep he could believe that when he woke up he would speak. He would unload all of the terrible secrets that locked away his voice. He knew that wouldn’t happen. As he passed by the couch he gently brushed the boy’s hair out of his face. All he could do was make sure that he was there for him when he woke up, like always.

He had thought that The Joker had won. Now he realized that in his own way Tim had won. He may not be the teenager he was before but he was living as close to a normal life as he could. Bruce was proud of him for that and loved him for the strength that he showed by getting up every morning. He told him how proud he was of him and that he loved him everyday. He hoped that one day Tim would believe it.

The End.


End file.
